International Relations Commons^™

The United States, The Arab World And The Gulf Crisis, Dan Tschirgi

Faculty Book Chapters

In mid-1990, tensions were rapidly growing in that part of the Middle East now generally referred to as "the Gulf." The immediate issue was Iraq's claim that other oil producers in the area were exceeding agreed quotas and therefore keeping oil prices inordinately low. By July, a sharp confrontation had developed between Iraq and Kuwait. Baghdad not only accused its smaller neighbor of quota violations but also of having encroached upon Iraq's own oil resources. With the encouragement of Egypt and Saudi Arabia, Iraqi and Kuwaiti representatives met in Jeddah at the end of the month. By then, Iraqi demands …